Pro Ana Pro Mia sites....

[jillianjiggs]

Quote:

Originally Posted by amanda1210 Your DONT hve to weight a certain amount to BE ANOREXIC! An obese person can "be anorexic" by having the mindset of an ana and having traits of ana. Not all the girls on ANA websites are thin, trust me, they all range in so many different sizes! And every single one is accepted in their community! So plz dont think you have to LOOK anorexic to be anorexic or fit certain criteria because anorexia is far more than that!

that is not true in the least.

you can be obese and have "anorexic traits" but you will never be diagnosed as anorexic (at an obese weight). ever.

for a doctor to ever diagnose someone with anorexia nervosa, you MUST meet the criteria of: (DSM-IV)

- BMI 17.5 or lower
- intense fear of gaining weight even though underweight
- refusal to gain or maintain healthy weight (a body weight 15% below expected healthy weight for age/height)
- at least 3 consecutive loss of menstrual periods (this is waived if on birth control)

those girls you mention from those sites, if they do not meet this criteria, are not anorexic. they may have eating disorders (not otherwise specified), disordered eating or just plain body image, emotional/mental and food issues, but they are NOT anorexic.

you may want to do a little more research if you're going to go around telling people that they are wrong when they are not.

 

[V15U4L_3RR0R]

I only found out that sites like that existed after I got back to a healthy weight and I was very tempted to look but I haven't because I still have issues with food and my own body image also.

I can see the appeal in them though and if I had known about them at the time, I would have joined in. Finding people who were in a similar mindset to me would have been wonderful because then I wouldn't have been so alone. I went through my disorder with me, myself and I. I still have days, even though it's been three years, where I don't feel like eating anything because I can't face it.

Having an eating disorder doesn't register as bad when you have one because you can't see the wood through the trees as it were. It takes a lot of reprogramming to realize that you are ill.

 

[Beauty Mark]

I think there is some confusion about what these sites are. Being pro-ana/pro-mia is being pro-anorexia/pro-bulimia. While it's okay and healthy to be at peace with a part of yourself that isn't ideal, like I'm okay that I know I have a tendency towards depression, I don't believe calling yourself pro-illness is a good idea. I don't consider myself pro-depression but pro-helping getting out of that state. I don't see these sites as like a support group, like Alcoholics Anonymous. I think the fact that they encourage you to sneak around your loved ones is a huge indicator of what they are.

Even if what they're encouraging (and yes, I've been to these sites, out of curiosity) isn't exactly traditional anorexia, it's still encouraging an unhealthy preoccupation with food. A few sites still list the idea and methods of purging, even though they don't condone it.

 

[user79]

Encouraging someone to their "goal weight" when that weight is 20 pounds underweight is not helpful. Period.

 

[V15U4L_3RR0R]

While that is entirely true and I agree, these girls will see it as being the exact opposite

 

[lipstickandhate]

A few people here seem to be confusing being "supportive" with "enabling."

 

[pumpkincat210]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beauty Mark I think there is some confusion about what these sites are. Being pro-ana/pro-mia is being pro-anorexia/pro-bulimia. While it's okay and healthy to be at peace with a part of yourself that isn't ideal, like I'm okay that I know I have a tendency towards depression, I don't believe calling yourself pro-illness is a good idea. I don't consider myself pro-depression but pro-helping getting out of that state. I don't see these sites as like a support group, like Alcoholics Anonymous. I think the fact that they encourage you to sneak around your loved ones is a huge indicator of what they are. .

Yeah, the whole point of these sites is to encourage the illness. They are not support groups for the recovering anorexic/bulimic, those are totally different. These people in the pro ana/pro mia sites are completely negative to one another even if the person is about to die from not eating.
I think it maybe a good idea for sites to shut these groups down, but I'm sure they'll find another way to connect and feed off of each others negativity.

 

[pumpkincat210]

Quote:

Originally Posted by amanda1210 Th ana forums offer nothing but support! They don't say to each other "hey you starved yourself today great job!" but instead its more like Congrats! I'm so proud that you achieve your goal weight, and we congratulate each other for being strong and not giving into temptation. We dont encourage other to starve to death, we encourage each other to make better choices about what we do and do not eat.

I'm not sure you have visited the same sites that i have. I visited a couple on myspace. The girls on the site I went to were not encouraging any healthy eating habits. They were saying do not eat, period.

I also don't understand why this thread is making you so mad. The original question was "Should these sites where encouraging on another to go to extreme lengths to be anorexic or bulimic should be shut down by private sites such as myspace and facebook?" If you would like to read the original article here you go...BBC NEWS | Health | Pro-anorexia site clampdown urged
No one was judging anybody in fact we were talking about how some people needed help and how common the illnesses were. I was surprised many people don't even know they have an eating disorder.

 

[Beauty Mark]

I think the question goes beyond Ana/Mia and just sites in general advocating unhealthy or harmful behaviors, like cutting

 

[pumpkincat210]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beauty Mark I think the question goes beyond Ana/Mia and just sites in general advocating unhealthy or harmful behaviors, like cutting

I agree. and who controls the internet? Is the government going to have to start filtering everything, like China does? It's a difficult choice.

 

[Beauty Mark]

It's not the government's responsibility but the parents and community to raise responsible, good people. Teach kids not be racist, healthy coping mechanisms, etc.

 

[pumpkincat210]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beauty Mark It's not the government's responsibility but the parents and community to raise responsible, good people. Teach kids not be racist, healthy coping mechanisms, etc.

I agree with you that parents need to be more responsible, but too many parents just don't care or don't know how to deal with their kids behaviors. Some of the time the kids may need professional intervention if they are harming themselves..
I don't want the government to monitor americans via the internet but it seems "the greater good" theory is very popular right now. Combine that with the terrorism excuse and our country is going to be on total lockdown soon.
And for people with an eating disorder, is this something you are born with or a pattern of behavior that you learned and fell into?

 

[xxsgtigressxx]

I dont judge people with anorexia or bulimia as being disgusting or weird in any way, however in no way do i think it is reasonable or should be encouraged...one of my best friends has struggled with this since we were in highschool and I get so upset because she is in this altered reality where she really thinks she looks great, and I found her to be more beautiful when she was healthy. Unfortunately she has gotten great feedback from men who think shes more attractive now (and im not saying anorexia or bulimia is about being attractive, im totally speaking about my view of the situation since i dont have an eating disorder mindset) I think that she gets constant encouragement by guys commenting on how amazing her body is. I dont think the government should regulate these sites because i have been to them and in no way have felt the need to do that to myself. Its all in how you are naturally pre-dispositioned. You dont watch the movie Requiem for a dream and want to do drugs, do you know what Im saying? I think there needs to be more information taught from early on to children on how to eat healthfully, and I think parents need to stop letting their children play video games all day and make them go outside and play and get exercise. if people had a more healthy approach to life then I think extreme means of weightloss might diminish. And parents need to watch their children, because as much as children always seem to find a way to hide from their parents, at LEAST it makes it more inconvenient for someone to get into an eating disorder, thus making it a little more likely their child wont try. I could be completely wrong though.

 

[pumpkincat210]

Quote:

Originally Posted by xxsgtigressxx I dont judge people with anorexia or bulimia as being disgusting or weird in any way, however in no way do i think it is reasonable or should be encouraged...one of my best friends has struggled with this since we were in highschool and I get so upset because she is in this altered reality where she really thinks she looks great, and I found her to be more beautiful when she was healthy. Unfortunately she has gotten great feedback from men who think shes more attractive now (and im not saying anorexia or bulimia is about being attractive, im totally speaking about my view of the situation since i dont have an eating disorder mindset) I think that she gets constant encouragement by guys commenting on how amazing her body is. I dont think the government should regulate these sites because i have been to them and in no way have felt the need to do that to myself. Its all in how you are naturally pre-dispositioned. You dont watch the movie Requiem for a dream and want to do drugs, do you know what Im saying? I think there needs to be more information taught from early on to children on how to eat healthfully, and I think parents need to stop letting their children play video games all day and make them go outside and play and get exercise. if people had a more healthy approach to life then I think extreme means of weightloss might diminish. And parents need to watch their children, because as much as children always seem to find a way to hide from their parents, at LEAST it makes it more inconvenient for someone to get into an eating disorder, thus making it a little more likely their child wont try. I could be completely wrong though.

It's really sad that guys are into the skin and bones look now. They see too many airbrushed models in magazines and visually altered people on television. I don't know who decided what was good looking, but they are destroying natural beauty. I always thought healthy without being overweight or underweight was the most attractive but apparently i'm out of date.
I don't know at what age people start showing symptoms of eating disorders, but parents should be attentive to their children as much as possible. From a site I found it says explanations range from biological predisposition theories to those involving psychosocial distress and parenting styles. I guess this goes along with all self destructive behavior since there are usually more than one disorders involved, like depression and anxiety.

 

[purrtykitty]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pumpkincat210 And for people with an eating disorder, is this something you are born with or a pattern of behavior that you learned and fell into?

IMO, I think it's genetic, so persons with a family history have a greater propensity for developing. I had an aunt and great-grandmother who had disordered eating behaviors, similar to what I have.

Quote:

Originally Posted by pumpkincat210 I don't know at what age people start showing symptoms of eating disorders, but parents should be attentive to their children as much as possible.

I was ten or so when I started using diet pills. It wasn't until I was fifteen until my disorder was "full-blown" and my parents got me into treatment (i.e. I lost enough weight that they and others realized there was a problem). I never got down to an anorexic weight because my parents recognized I had a problem before it went any further.

 

[lara]

Quote:

Originally Posted by amanda1210 Th ana forums offer nothing but support! They don't say to each other "hey you starved yourself today great job!" but instead its more like Congrats! I'm so proud that you achieve your goal weight [...]

When you're talking about goal weights that are kilos below healthy weight levels, you do realise that the latter statement becomes just a dressed-up version of the 'congrats on starving yourself!' comment, right?

 

[chocodcocoa]

To me, the pro ana and pro mia sites are VERY dangerous... they are encouraging women to starve themselves so that they could look bone thin...

10% of women who are diagnosed with anorexia DIE!!!!!! PEOPLE DIE FROM THIS!!!!!!!! Either by suicide, electrolyte imbalance, emaciation and other physiological failures due to starvation.

Please eat. Being a healthy weight is one thing, being so scarily skinny that your thighs are as thin as your calves is not pretty.

 

[Beauty Mark]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pumpkincat210 I agree with you that parents need to be more responsible, but too many parents just don't care or don't know how to deal with their kids behaviors. Some of the time the kids may need professional intervention if they are harming themselves.. I don't want the government to monitor americans via the internet but it seems "the greater good" theory is very popular right now. Combine that with the terrorism excuse and our country is going to be on total lockdown soon. And for people with an eating disorder, is this something you are born with or a pattern of behavior that you learned and fell into?

The thing with the government taking over is it's a slippery slope. Nothing pisses me off more than racist sites or homophobic sites that promote those POVs. If children need professional intervention with anything, "it takes a village to raise a child" comes to mind. A family member, neighbor, friend's parent, teacher should figure out something is up if the actual parents do not.

I think an ED can be a combination of things, like any other mental illness. I've mentioned before that I have dealt with clinical depression in the past. My therapist started out with asking me about family history. I told her that I was adopted, so it doesn't matter. According to her, depression can be influenced environmentally; my father and I believe my mother are/were depressed. I don't know if it's coincidental. I don't see why eating disorders would be different.

While I don't believe any method is 100% foolproof, I think encouraging your children to be healthy is the best way to help prevent things. Let them know that the scale doesn't dictate who they are, teach them about exercise, help them learn to cope properly.

 

[captodometer]

Yes, anorexia and bulimia are certainly mental illnesses. And part of the illness is convincing yourself that your behavior is normal. Pro Ana and Pro Mia sites are not support groups, per se: they encourage the progression of the diseases. There are certainly anorexia and bulimia groups online that support recovery: they don't call themselves pro ana or pro mia. Posters on a recovery support group site will post things like 'congrats on gaining a pound' not stuff like 'congrats for dropping below the 100lb mark.'

I don't support censorship of any kind. We are all entitled to be as objectionable as we want to be, until we go out and actually cause physical harm to somebody else. So sites that are pro ana, pro HIV conversion, anti-Semitic, neo Nazi, whatever have the right to exist. But it is definitely the responsibility of parents to have a clue as to what their children are doing and watching. As adults, we bear much more responsibility for our own behavior.

The objectionable sites can be counteracted, to some extent. If you Google a lot of the topics I listed and then click on a lot of the links returned, you will find that a lot of them don't lead to the topic that you were expecting

It's because public health people like myself will post/host sites with the word "pro ana" in a lot of times, but if you actually click through you will be connected to a mental health provider or eating disorder clinic. Or the Southern Poverty Law Center or US Holocaust Museum might host a neo Nazi site. The truly determined will just keep clicking until they find a site that has what they want, but some of the less committed might be prompted to seek help.

 

[redambition]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pumpkincat210 And for people with an eating disorder, is this something you are born with or a pattern of behavior that you learned and fell into?

i don't have an eating disorder, but i think it could be a bit from column a and a bit from column b.

there can certainly be a genetic propensity for it, but i believe the nurture factor has a role as well.

if a child/young adult is thrown into a situation where food or body image is obsessed about then their mindset toward what is healthy and what is ok can change - especially if they are feeling vulnerable or insecure about themselves for whatever reason.